In Brian Polian, the Wolf Pack would get a high-energy recruiter as its next head coach

The Wolf Pack appears to have found its next football coach in Brian Polian, the 38-year-old son of a football mastermind who has paved his own path as a high-energy recruiter and special teams guru.

CBS Sports’ Bruce Feldman reported Polian was offered the Wolf Pack job on Saturday and has accepted the position. UNR president Marc Johnson and Wolf Pack athletic director Cary Groth would not confirm the report and said the process of finding the successor to longtime coach Chris Ault remains active.

“We're not quite there yet,” Johnson said. “Nothing has been negotiated or signed. Everything could fall apart and we could have to move on to a No. 2 candidate.”

Groth said she expects a hire to be completed by Friday’s Board of Regents meeting but would not confirm that the Wolf Pack has officially offered anybody the position. She also declined to speak about what she specifically liked about Polian during the interview process.

“We’ve talked to a handful of coaches and are happy with the quality of the candidates we’ve interviewed during this process,” Groth said.

Brian Polian, left, shown during his time as an assistant with Stanford, is expected to be the Wolf Pack football team's next head coach. (GoStanford.com)

Johnson and Groth were both in Dallas this week, where they interviewed five candidates, including Polian, who gave his pitch Thursday. One day later, Polian’s Texas A&M Aggies – he’s the team’s special teams coordinator and tight ends coach – beat Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.

In addition to a one-year stint at Texas A&M, Polian also has worked at Stanford (2010-11), Notre Dame (2005-09), Central Florida (2004) and Buffalo (1998, 2001-03). His main area of expertise has been in special teams, although Polian also is a highly regarded recruiter with strong ties to California and Texas.

Polian’s largest recruiting get was luring linebacker Manti Te’o, this year’s Hesiman Trophy runner-up, to Notre Dame. He also got running back Cierre Woods on campus that season and was the lead recruiter for quarterbacks Jimmy Clausen and Dayne Christ and tight end Kyle Rudolph, all five-star prospects.

In 2011, Polian was the recruiting coordinator at Stanford. He has always stressed the importance of recruiting to building a high-level program. That’s something Polian will have to excel at with the Wolf Pack, which lacks the kind of top facilities he’s been accustomed to as an assistant at BCS schools.

“It’s always about the players — it’s about your personnel,” Polian told Sporting News in November 2011. “With that being said, there are some really good coaches out there. Ken Niumatalolo at Navy has won a high percentage of games and beaten some good teams with people who were overlooked by others. But you can’t paint it with a broad brush. In the end, it comes down to the players.”

Polian is accustomed to successful programs. He’s been an assistant coach on teams that have reached BCS bowls in four of the past eight seasons. Polian’s calling card has been special teams. During his 12 years as an assistant coach, Polian has been a special teams coordinator in 10 of those seasons.

Former Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh, now the head man with the San Francisco 49ers, hired Polian away from Notre Dame prior to the 2010 season. While Harbaugh didn’t have a relationship with Polian prior to the hire, he was familiar with his work with the Fightin’ Irish.

“I didn't know Brian but I was always impressed with him when we played against his special teams units for three years – Stanford vs. Notre Dame,” Harbaugh told ESPN in 2010. “They were good battles but I kind of felt they got the better of it. And the footprint he's always left in recruiting we have not been able to match. So if you cannot beat ’em, join ’em.”

While Polian doesn’t have any coordinating experience on offense or defense, he comes from great bloodlines. His father, Bill, was a highly successful NFL executive with the Indianapolis Colts, Carolina Panthers and Buffalo Bills. His brother, Chris, also was the Colts’ general manager from 2009-11.

Bill Polian helped build the Bills team that reached four straight Super Bowls from 1991-94. He was then the general manager of the expansion Panthers before joining the Colts in 1997, drafting Peyton Manning with the first pick of the 1998 draft and constructing a team that reached two Super Bowls.

The younger Polian, who made $248,200 at Texas A&M this season, appears to have beaten out a trio of coaches with stronger ties to Nevada. Ex-Wolf Pack assistant coaches Chris Klenakis, Jim Mastro and Tom Mason all had interest in the job, which looks like it’s headed to the up-and-coming Polian.

During his five years at Notre Dame, Polian helped build a roster that will play against Alabama on Monday in the BCS title game. Then-Irish coach Charlie Weis gushed about Polian’s impact on the program, as well as his recruiting ability, during their time together at Notre Dame.

"He’s really created foundations," Weis told USA Today in 2009. "I walk into high schools with him, and everyone knows who he is. He’s a bulldog. He’s a grinder."

Beau Palica = You don't know that. You have no idea whats in store for nevada the next 3 years. Your entitled to your opinion but your opinion is stupid and unsubstantiated. You feel me dog?

January 6, 2013 at 5:08 pm

I'm not sure I like this hire. Sounds like a guy who is looking to use the Nevada job as a stepping stone to something bigger. I hope it works out but would have much rather seen the job go to someone who has some loyalty to NV.

Get use to it. Gone are the days of Coach Ault winning like crazy and wanting to stay for the next 28 years. We have to face fats. Nevada is small time football. We are not Pac 12 or SEC. If we can get a coach to come in here and win for two or three years, we have to accept that. We must accept the fact that nevada is a Stepping Stone School. Just like when we hired Trent Johnson. He turned us into a power in less than 3 years and away he went to Stanford and then LSU. We can't afford to be anything more than a stepping stone school. 500,000 is a nice price for a coach who has made 200,000 or 300,000 the last 10 years, but the opportunity to succeed at a higher level and make a million a year in the process will always be in the shadows.

I must agree. Polian's dad might have been a successful executive withe the NFL. However, his dad is not coaching the Pack. Look no further than the father/son debacle at USC. What offense an defense will he use? Looks like a job hopper too me. The smart play would have been to hire either Klenakis, Mastro or maybe Mason and retained Ault as a Piston consultant. How much do you think the Pistol is worth when negotiating a TV contract?

Get use to it. Gone are the days of Coach Ault winning like crazy and wanting to stay for the next 28 years. We have to face facts. Nevada is small time football. We are not Pac 12 or SEC. If we can get a coach to come in here and win for two or three years, we have to accept that. We must accept the fact that nevada is a Stepping Stone School. Just like when we hired Trent Johnson. He turned us into a power in less than 3 years and away he went to Stanford and then LSU. We can't afford to be anything more than a stepping stone school. 500,000 is a nice price for a coach who has made 200,000 or 300,000 the last 10 years, but the opportunity to succeed at a higher level and make a million a year in the process will always be in the shadows.

Why? Rolovich turned down Temple this week and deci9ded to stay at Nevada, thats huge. He will be instrumental in keeping the vaunted Pistol offense up and revving here at nevada. Were fine. Ault step down and the first reaction is a knee jerk by half of nevada. Let this thing play out and see how it looks come the fall. Polian is defensive minded coach and along with Rolovich and the pIstol...we could be lethal

About this blog

Longtime RGJ Media reporter Dan Hinxman is the authority on Wolf Pack athletics, bringing you the day-to-day coverage of Nevada’s sports teams. Dan has covered almost everything the Northern Nevada sports scene has to offer and will use his knowledge to bring you authoritative and engaging Wolf Pack content. Follow him on Twitter at @DanHinxmanRGJ.